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Genesis IX: The Replenisher
In Rakbana, the party contended with many dangers, but the worst by far arose when they encountered Albrek Bane, who had been pursuing them since their departure from Heimcanaan. Desperate to stave off destruction at the hands of an enraged Immortal of Death, the adventurers made use of the power of various mysterious magical objects in their possession, including Lantis' dream orb, and the soul urn Jovian acquired from gambling with the Collectors. These items were revealed to collectively contain fragments of the essence of the Void Immortal, the "Immortal" of Mal, the Empty God. A vortex of power converged on the site in Rakbana, ultimately giving new life to the Void Immortal by absorbing these items and the physical forms of Albrek Bane and Lantis, both of whom were believed to have been slain in the process. Tahl was also believed to have been killed, but it was soon revealed that he was actually split in two: a "pure" Tahl, imbued with the light of the Lantern, and a husk containing what was left, which took the name Lath. With no choice but to press on or die to the semi-natural dangers of Rakbana, the party continuedon. After contending with a group of acid-spitting, magic-consuming creatures called "digesters," the group made it to the ruins described to them by the heimwargs. Amidst this ruin was an intact structure of white marble and green jade: the original Temple of Birth, in which they found Avarshinah. The Immortal of Birth explained that she was trying to restore Rakbana, and asked that the party go and purge some ancient creature called the "Replenisher" from the largest acid volcano in the region, which she insists is responsible for blocking her restorative magic. In exchange, she offered her piece of the ''Renascentia Arcanum. ''The party rested in the Temple of Birth and then departed. On the way to the volcano, they encountered a large metal structure, walking across the wasteland on two legs billowing clouds of steam. The vehicle, made of steel and iron and clearly patched together many times, sent an envoy to meet the party as they passed. They learned that the walking vessel was called the ''Morpheus, ''and was commanded by Captain Elias Ventir. The ''Morpheus ''was native to Noctis, but had somehow become displaced. Captain Ventir offered passage to the volcano to the party, which they accepted. On the way, the Morpheus demonstrated some of its impressive firepower. They also encountered Lath during this time, who rejoined with the party, feeling a need to aid them without fully understanding why. When they arrived at the acid volcano, Elias extended his offer of aid, but was forced to disembark from the Morpheus to enter the volcano's cavern system. In the volcano, the party was separated early on by a sudden cave-in, which distantly led to Elias fleeing wildly through the caverns through a series of dangers, losing several limbs and sustaining many injuries in the attempt. To the party's surprise, the volcano contained some living qashra inhabitants. While exploring, the Collectors soon arrived, and the adventurers had to elude them while continuing their search. They eventually located a central chamber, covered floor-to-ceiling in the jade moss found elsewhere in Rakbana. In the center of the chamber, a column of the same moss descended from the ceiling into a deep pit in the floor, and in the center of the column was what appeared to be an uncommunicative qashra. After barring the door against the Collectors, the party began looking into the situation. With some work and investigation, the party discovered the qashra was the Replenisher they were sent to destroy, and that it was another living Janastone like Tan-Sul; actually, the first of its kind. In the pit below the Replenisher, the mosses converged into thick tendrils that appeared to be producing yet another living Janastone. The party concluded that volcano was a sort of crucible for manufacturing these living Janastones, by condensing the minuscule Janastone fragments that gave Rakbana's jade moss its characteristic colour. The party destroyed the Replenisher as requested, which caused the volcano to destabilize. They made their way back to the Morpheus with the aid of the Collectors, who had come to an agreement with the party to take the Replenisher's "soul." The Collectors returned to their black, crustacean-like airship, and the party went back to the Temple of Birth, where Avarshinah gave them a token to prove to the heimwargs that she was giving them leave to take the ''Renascentia Arcanum. ''When asked about Replenisher and the living Janastones, she made vague references to a grand plan made in her youth, and her regrets thereof. She hinted that the collective power of the living Janastones may be sufficient to give new life to a fallen god, a prospect which excited Lath, although again he found himself unable to place exactly why, his memories of Aal having fled with the Purified Tahl. Category:Plot of Genesis